Pope announces trip to Middle East in May

Pope Benedict announced today he would be visiting the Middle East in May and said he wanted the trip to be a catalyst for peace and unity in the region.

The Pope told pilgrims and tourists in St Peter's Square the visit would take place from May 8 to 15. Vatican sources have said he would start the trip in Jordan and then move on to Israel and also visit Jesus' birthplace of Bethlehem, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

"I will make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to ask the Lord, by visiting the places sanctified by his earthly passage, for the precious gift of unity and peace for the Middle East and for all humanity," he said.

It will be Benedict's first trip to the Holy Land as pope and the first by a pontiff since Pope John Paul visited in 2000 and asked God forgiveness for offences by Christians against Jews over the centuries.

The Pope's stop in Israel, where he will spend most of the trip which includes a visit to Jerusalem, will be particularly significant because of the continuing controversy over his decision to lift the excommunication of a bishop who denies the Holocaust.